Of Twisted Ankles and Bruises
by Akakuro4869
Summary: Soulmates share sores and injuries. Katsuki Yuuri is not amused. Viktor has a totally obvious crush on Yuuri. By the way, Yuuri plays basketball.
1. Tales of a Frustrated Sophomore

Katsuki Yuuri, a sophomore at 夢咲く High School who dabbles in a lot of sports, but his true love is basketball. His slightly chubby and shorter-than-average physique puts him at a disadvantage on the court, but he eventually developed a unique way of surpassing that and thus became known for his unorthodox style of playing, making him the resourceful starter power forward. His outstanding mental endurance, therefore, makes him a well sought-for athlete and helper in many of the sports teams.

Though, as happy he is with his sporting career, he cannot deny his inexperience in the love department. He hasn't identified his soulmate yet, but he is very much aware that they exist; he's got an impressive number of bruises spanning his body to prove it.

In a world where soulmates share injuries and sores, Yuuri sure wasn't having it easy. Sure, he sustained a lot in his career as an active sportsman, but it didn't exactly help because half of those were caused indirectly by his soulmate. He did feel bad for causing his soulmate so much pain, knowing that his choice of recreation and his natural clumsiness was not helping the situation. Though, he always wondered what his soulmate did to garner such a large collection of bruises and sprained ankles over the last 10 years. He did wonder if the other was an athlete, as he could no longer tell apart if the constant soreness in his muscles were due to his own vigorous training, or caused by his soulmate.

Speaking of injuries, Yuuri was musing over a particularly stubborn bruise on his hip that persisted for over a week. Resident bestie and shooting guard Phichit Chulanont had originally teased him for having a clumsy soulmate, but that quickly faded into concern when more than just bruises had shown up on various parts of his body; twisted ankles were a favorite. He couldn't help but feel very annoyed to how this soulmate's injuries hounded him persistently, and to how they often affected his own performance. That one time, he was seething about how his soulmate managed to give him an impressively swollen ankle in the middle of the qualifiers and forced him to pull out midgame; they barely advanced to the finals when Celestino pulled him out and Yuuri was feeling so frustrated and incensed he was tempted to 'unintentionally' injure himself just to annoy the other.

He absolutely loathes the system of soulmates sharing injuries. He was also starting to doubt the idea of soulmates and romantic love by the time he was pulled out of practice for the hundredth time because of an injury he did not deserve.

Then there was Viktor. Viktor Nikiforov. Resident 'school prince' and 4-time reigning champion of the ISU Junior Grand Prix Finals of Men's Singles. Flirty and princely persona. The only person whom Yuuri had a tiny crush on since he was 11.

Okay, screw that. Make that a HUGE crush and an unhealthy obsession that resulted in an array of posters taped on the wall of his room and him being on the end of Phichit's eternal teasing for his unrequited celebrity crush. Heck, he still couldn't believe he was in the same school as he is. With Yuuri's luck and lack of charm, he was more than a hundred percent sure Viktor would not notice him.

Viktor does, anyway.

It all happened during the annual concert, and it went very well. Yuuri was pretty sure his performance was satisfying, and while he was clearing up, in the dark of the heavy curtains and blurry vision, it was no surprise he couldn't see the corner of a folded up table, and therefore he dragged his left shin against it.

It was a fucking METAL table.

The next thing he knew was his left leg collectively exploding in pain, and that ended with scattered papers and a heap of groaning Yuuri on the floor. It didn't exactly help when he knocked his leg against something else when he was struggling to get back on his feet, which sent another wave of pain shooting up his spine. Suppressing a pathetic whimper, he managed to crawl to the dressing rooms before limping to the infirmary for treatment. He was definitely shocked to find Viktor sitting up on one of the beds, getting his left shin treated.

He totally messed up their first meeting by letting out a strangled gasp and quickly retreated into the hallway, but not before stumbling and face-planting on the ground.

* * *

Even though his first meeting with Viktor had been less than ideal, they've managed to move on past the point of being complete strangers. Whenever they were not practicing or doing schoolwork, promises were made for casual 'study outings' ('Purely platonic!' Yuuri protested to Phichit, who was not sniggering at all). Though, to be fair, with the Regional qualifiers for basketball and the World Junior Championships coming up, it was honest to say their number of meetings were almost nonexistent. They did stay in touch by texting and calls, though.

It didn't take long for Yuuri to start falling for Viktor. Hard. It was no longer a celebrity crush, he wasn't lusting after him either, nor was that any sort of platonic attraction. He wasn't sure what to call it, but he decided to call it 'love'. He must have been pretty obvious about his confusion, because Phichit actually offered to spell it out for him after practice one day.

It had all been a blur after that.

Yuuri was, to be frank, very disappointed when he noticed how the final round of the Playoff Qualifiers had clashed with Viktor's Regional Qualifiers. Though disappointed, he wished Viktor the best of luck before he stepped on the court. An hour later, Yuuri was waltzing down to the locker rooms with Phichit trailing behind him, happy yet exhausted.

Then the world disappeared under his feet.

One moment he was yawning. The next one, though, he was staring into Phichit and Celestino's panicked and concerned faces, their features blurred and hazy. Still feeling rather disoriented, he staggered to the locker room with Phichit's help, and nearly fainted again when he stared into his reflection, with the addition of a black eye and a very swollen lip.

According to Phichit, he toppled face first onto the floor, without premonition. He'd been out for about 15 seconds, and on top of that, he bit his lip and hit his right eye. Which hurt. A lot.

Yuuri was forced to check in with the A&E by the mother hen aka Phichit and was immediately ran through a series of tests and checks. By the time he was requested to stay for further observation, it was already 10 at night. The room he was checked into was dimmed, the curtains around the only other bed already drawn, the soft sound of snoring permeating throughout the space. Too tired to do anything else, Yuuri crawled on his bed and passed out in 3 seconds flat.

The next time he opened his eyes, he squinted into the face of Viktor Nikiforov, with a swollen lip and an impressive ring of black surrounding his right eye.

An echoing screech resounded throughout the building, waking up its other residents at the ripe hour of 7.

* * *

The revelation of Viktor being his soulmate came quickly to Yuuri, to which he responded by turning into a tomato and disappearing under the thin white blankets, only poking his head out when he hears the door opening.

Phichit takes in the situation: Yuuri under the sheets with a black eye and swollen lip. Viktor Nikiforov sitting on Yuuri's bed with a black eye and a swollen lip.

Predictably, he shouts "Congratulations on finding your soulmate! Man, do you know how long I've been cringing over your obvious crush for that ice skating God sitting on your bed?", leaving Yuuri ultimately mortified. To Yuuri's surprise and Phichit's delight, Viktor's face turned into an interesting shade of pink, to which a certain someone snaps a photo of and instantly posts it on Instagram.

Likes and followers were pouring in, and #Viktuuri was instantly trending.

* * *

Ever since then, The Supportive BoyfriendsTM have turned up at each and every one of the competitions the other was taking part in. To the hell with extra practice and fan meets. Yuuri was no longer confused between feelings for Viktor and his soulmate at the same time, and he no longer loathed the system of sharing injuries.

Why, you'd ask?

Because he had an awesome boyfriend to ride it out with him.


	2. Tales of an ice skating God

Viktor Nikiforov. A junior at 夢咲くHigh School who is the resident 'school prince' and the 4-time reigning champion of the ISU Junior Grand Prix Finals of Men's Singles. His ethereal looks and devilish physique forced him to the top as the 'most desirable person' in the region, and it didn't help how he was THE figure skating God that lured everyone in. While he was happy how he was widely and fully supported, he was more than slightly irritated to how he held no privacy to his personal life.

The only thing he prevented from leaking out to social media and the school gossip was his not-so-secret crush on a certain basketball player - Katsuki Yuuri.

He first noticed Yuuri training with the track team, to which he pulled Mila aside to ask about him.

"Mila, who's that cute guy with the slicked back hair?"

"Hm? Oh, you mean Yuuri?"

Viktor wrinkled his nose "Yuri?"

Mila amended "Not Yura, Katsuki Yuuri, from 2-B. He's helping out on the cross-country event 'cause Michele withdrew. What, you after his ass or something?", much to Viktor's chagrin.

"Mila, just so you know, I'm not just in for his ass."

"But you'll admit you want a piece of it."

"...busted."

Apparently, Yuuri was a regular on the basketball team, and in demand for helping a lot of the other sports teams, well known for his unparalleled determination. He couldn't resist lingering around school just to see him dominate the field or the court, or wherever he was training at. He was getting addicted to seeing droplets of sweat bead on his pale collarbones, completely exposed due to the revealing sports gear Yuuri favored.

Damn, he's hot.

And cute. And talented too. Viktor validated that when he saw Yuuri during the annual concert, with his thick glasses on, with his hair slicked back, immaculate white gloves almost glowing in the dark of the hall. It never occurred to Viktor that Yuuri was a music sort of person, and he was about to be proven wrong. Before his dramatic entrance as the male lead in the play, he was able to enjoy they way Yuuri seemed to dance when he embraced the gleaming bells on stage. He was disappointed when it ended.

Oh well, at least he knew the other was good at both music and sport.

He carried those thoughts on stage with him, never losing focus. Not even once.

Until his left leg collectively exploded in pain.

He nearly staggered in the middle of a confident stride, but managed to anchor his thoughts to a pair of chocolate brown eyes. Thus, he was able to last until the curtain drop. Though soon afterward, he was sent to the infirmary when Yakov saw his bleeding and bruised shin. Pain shot up his spine when he knocked his injured leg against something else, making it twice as intense. Gritting his teeth to avoid a pathetic whimper, he carefully dragged himself to the infirmary. Away from the clamor of the hall, he let go of his stage face and sighed. Truth be told though, he was surprised to see his crush crash into the infirmary, then back away so quickly he kissed the floor.

Despite their disastrous first (direct) encounter, Viktor walked away with Yuuri's number in his phone that night, deliriously happy.

* * *

The Regional Qualifiers have been perfect, except for one small detail - the tumble he took after a flubbed quad flip during the 6-minute warm-up. He blacked out for about 15 seconds on the ice, and had to be taken off prematurely for a short break.

It had not affected his performance (he placed first, by the way), however, he was still taken to the A&E to check for the after effects of cracking his skull on the ice. Also, the appearance of an unexplained blackened right eye and swollen lip scared the shit out of both Yakov and Viktor, so he had to stay overnight for further observation. Since the competition ended at noon, he was sitting in bed by 4, bored to tears and slightly fatigued.

He drew the curtains at 8, and slept the night away. The other bed was still empty.

The next morning, he woke up to the sounds of soft snores in the neighboring bed. Curiosity got better of him, so he drew back the curtains. To say he was shocked was the understatement of the century.

Katsuki Yuuri, the epitome of a sleeping beauty, was sporting a blackened right eye. And an identical swollen lip to Viktor.

Feeling rather disoriented, he sat down heavily on Yuuri's bed.

Soulmates, huh.

He was still rather out of it, and was startled out of his thoughts when Yuuri woke up, let out an unmanly shriek, and buried himself under the blankets.

It wasn't until Phichit Chulanot burst into the room when Viktor finally got his bearings back, only to lose it right away when Phichit exclaimed "Congratulations on finding your soulmate! Man, do you know how long I've been cringing over your obvious crush for that ice skating God sitting on your bed?" Even though the statement was obviously directed towards Yuuri, he couldn't help but feel flustered, his face burning.

He was also glad that Phichit was such a good and supportive wingman.

* * *

Viktor never fully embraced the concept of soulmates sharing injuries. He hated when an injury from the other prevented him from performing or training. He hated it even more for it causing pain for his unknown soulmate, his guilt getting better of him.

That, however, was countered when he met Yuuri. He still couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt for putting Yuuri through his suffering, and he never gets used to it. Too many a time, Yuuri would storm into practice, slightly limping, then yelling at Viktor to get off the ice. That lingering ache in his left ankle had given him away. He was a tad bit annoyed when Yakov refrained him from practicing until his ankle fully recovered, but that was quickly swept away by Yuuri fawning over him and giving him his undivided attention every day.

And being Viktor, he always would take care of his injured boyfriend and in turn, give him his undivided attention.

All the time.


End file.
